Heartlines
by MissJessy
Summary: A sniper is called in by the highest of American powers to take care of the Ari problem despite the reluctance of most federal agencies. The team meets the person responsible for saving the day and Tim meets his match. AU. Takes places during "Twilight". McGee/OC.
1. Prologue

Hey there, everyone! So, I haven't written in forever and certainly not about NCIS. I love the show, I love the characters, so why not?

I don't have a beta, but I took my time reading through this so I hope it's all good.

**Disclaimer: I don't own NCIS or its characters, only plot and OCs. **

Enjoy!

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The sun was high in the sky, the air was calm. A woman was making her way up a staircase, whistling the familiar tune of "Back in Black". There was an earpiece lying on her shoulder and a rifle bag in her leather covered arms. Black boots made no sound on the old stairs, her steps light, and dog tags swung lightly. A deadly site if there ever was one.

She opened a door at the top of the stairs, coming onto a rooftop. She looked around, one hand straying to the hidden M9 Beretta under her jacket.

Finding no one, she hunkered down and found a covered position with clear view of wherever her target would be. She took out her M107 high powered rifle, and began assembling it to her liking. As she magazine was clicked into place and her scope attached, she put in the earpiece.

"Can you read me?" she spoke normally. She had that attractive, gentle husk in her voice. A light accent was apparent, Scottish, though it wasn't discernible.

"Loud and clear, Sergeant. Any indication that your target has arrived?" A deep voice responded, one the entire nation knew.

"No sir. Though, a fire fight is starting. He's bound to show up soon." She adjusted her scope, which doubled as a camera for those who gave her the order's she was carrying out now, to show the youngest agent, McGee, setting his tech gear up to scramble a frequency. The other three were making their way through the building.

Looking around once more she caught site of a familiar SUV near a building that was about 600 yards away from the building NCIS was in.

"Suspicious SUV, license plate number 7-2-4-Tango-Juliet-Alpha. I think this is Haswari's vehicle. Do you copy?" She focused on the SUV, seeing no one inside.

"We copy. Stand by for conformation." She kept silent as they looked up the plate. While waiting she began checking nearby rooftops for any movement. The dossier on him mentioned confidence, maybe even overconfidence. If this was true, there were five possibilities for his position.

As she was sweeping over one of those rooftops again she caught movement. Focusing on it, it was movement of rifle adjusting. She found the bastard.

"Target spotted." She spoke surely, adjusting her scope to get a better look. Adjusting her position also, she shuffled her and her rifle over to get a better angle. Once she had a perfect view of him she settled down, awaiting orders.

"The SUV is Haswari's. Do you have a clear shot?" The voice responded as she was adjusting, the time winding down.

"Yes sir," she began, though her attention wasn't on her earpiece as she continued, "No breeze, no obstacle, and 927 yards to clear." She finished lowly.

"I'm in position for a shot, sir." She spoke again, louder, awaiting the go-ahead to end this.

Her crosshairs were on his head, sharply aiming for his forehead. He was still, focused on whatever he was looking at through his own scope. It was clearly him; there would be no confusion or scapegoat this time.

"Take the shot." As soon as he finished speaking, her finger moved from its relaxed position to squeezing the trigger surely. The sound suppressed shot flew through the air and into Haswari's head. Blood painted the brick wall behind him and his head limply fell onto his rifle, screwing its position.

"Target hit," she spoke into the quiet air, "Kill confirmed. Ari Haswari is dead."

"Good job, Sergeant. Report to MTAC in NCIS in an hour." The woman grinned, and nodded despite not being in view. She packed up her rifle and stood, making her way back to the staircase.

"Thank you, Mr. President," She responded easily, the door slamming behind her and her silent footsteps making their way down this time.

A deadly woman indeed.

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Whew, okay. I hope it was enjoyable! I guess this means Kate's alive, yeah? I love Kate, and while I like Ziva, I need Kate.

*Nervously wrings hands* So review?


	2. Chapter 1

**And here we go, the story is really picking up! I honestly hope this isn't overload because I love details. Details are my best friend. You love the details, the details love you. **

***coughs***

**So, I still don't own anything having to do with NCIS, only this plot of my OCs. **

**Read, review, but overall, enjoy!**

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An hour had passed and the woman was riding an elevator in the NCIS building humming the vaguely familiar tune of "Hotel California". She glanced at her watch, nodding at her timing. Punctuality is key.

A ding sounded and the doors opened to reveal the bullpen, agents milling around and working. Her eyes immediately sought out the team she assisted today and found them in good spirits in a section, all at their desks. She smiled, liking them on a hunch.

Stepping out, a few eyes turned to her and stayed. It wasn't hard to notice her. With vibrant, dark red hair spiraling down her back, fathomless blue-grey eyes, and a gun peeking out from under her leather jacket she was certainly eye-catching. McGee could attest to that.

McGee's eyes followed her movement across the bullpen and then going up the stairs where he lost sight of her. Noticing his lack of attention, Tony commented.

"What you looking at, Probie?" Shaking himself, McGee avoided the question and tried to go back to his report. Tony looked around and found nothing out of the ordinary so he went back to his own work after McGee continued to avoid his questions.

It wasn't long after that Gibbs received a call for the team to head up to MTAC. Leading the way, with a sore Kate pulling up the back, they all filed up. McGee looked around but saw the red head nowhere to be found.

Upon entering the room they stood around before the Director told them to take a seat. Filling the first row, they found out why they were here.

"Apparently, today there was another threat than just the drone that was disabled. I just got word that Ari Haswari was there, acting as a sniper." The previous content mood of the team dropped and they all tensed in their chairs. Gibbs opened his mouth to speak but was cut off by the Director.

"I guess you were right, Gibbs, Haswari was playing us all. There was a direct order from the President for him to be terminated," the Director continued. Gibbs sat straighter, if possible. This was his domain, being the highly decorated Marine sniper he was, and he would be ready for the task.

"I would love to be the one to take him out." The Director nodded, knowing Gibbs and how much he hated this guy. He's been looking for the chance to end him for the longest time now, especially since he was back in the states.

"I'm sure, but while Haswari was acting sniper, so was someone else. Haswari is dead." And like that, the tense and anxious mood mostly dissipated for one of relief.

"Who was the sniper?" Tony spoke up, drawing the Director's eyes to him before they turned back to Gibbs. Kate and McGee took a second to send mocking looks Tony's way.

"Sergeant Olivia Starling, Marines." A slurping sound came right after that and all heads turned to the sound. In the back of the room was the woman that caught McGee's eye, an almost empty cup of something the source of the noise.

"Sergeant Starling, reporting for duty, sir!" She spoke, stepping forward and giving a short salute. Gibbs raised an eyebrow, giving her an assessing look. She stood there, unfazed by his gaze. She didn't get through the Marines without being able to handle a look like that.

Tony leaned over to McGee, adopting another one of his beloved characters for a second, "Good evening, Clarice." McGee gave him and look, shaking his head, before turning back to the standoff.

"You're the sniper that took out Haswari?" He sounded incredulous, and that's what got her blood boiling. She could fight with the best of them, and she had.

"Yes, sir, I am," she replied, her voice no longer easy. Her blue-greys had hardened, rivaling Gibbs' in intensity. And now the air in MTAC was tense again, watching Gibbs square off with this Sergeant Starling.

"Do we know for sure it was Haswari that she took out?" Gibbs questioned the Director, completely disregarding the Marine standing in front of him. The rest of the team kept looking back and forth between them as the Sergeant took another step forward.

"Yes, it was Haswari. I have video conformation. Not to mention, he'll be on your slab pretty soon," she spoke in her hardened tone. McGee could pick up on the slight lilt in her voice but had no time to focus on it as she finished speaking.

Before anyone else could say anything, the Director motioned to a tech and they put something up on the screen. Giving it their full attention, the scene opened up to wide shot of rooftops. Brief speech, and then the team saw themselves from earlier today all decked out in Kevlar with their weapons pulled.

She called out a plate number, calling it suspicious, and soon had a visual of her target. Focusing on it, the team saw the person who was handling the rifle and got a full shot of Haswari on the huge screen.

"I'm in position for a shot, sir," she spoke again, crosshairs suddenly appearing on the screen and centering on Haswari's forehead.

"Take the shot," the President of the United States directed her.

And take the shot she did, the telltale sound of a suppressed bullet ringing through the air and Haswari jerked as her bullet made contact. He fell onto his own rifle, blood everywhere.

"Target hit," her voice rang, "Kill confirmed. Ari Haswari is dead." The footage then cut off.

"In case you didn't recognize the rifle, Gunny," her voice called out in the silent room, "That was a Bravo 51. We call it a 'Kate.'" The Kate in the room froze, eyes wide. Her entire team knew rule 39: there is no such thing as coincidence. Ari was aiming for Kate.

The team looked back at the Sergeant, all with a thankful air to them. Gibbs moved forward again and put forward his hand. She made eye contact with him before grabbing his hand, okay with what she saw.

"Good shot, Sergeant. And thanks." She smirked then, giving his hand a firm shake before speaking.

"Thanks, Gunny. You're welcome." The last part was directed at the still shaken Kate Todd who was silently thanking the woman herself. They nodded at each other, understanding.

The rest of the team decided to formally introduce themselves, an eager Tony first.

"Very Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo, at your service," he spoke, a charming smile on his face. Her brow rose at the introduction but shook his hand regardless, giving him a smirk. Tony noticed the smirk but refused to deflate, letting Kate push him aside.

"Kate Todd. Nice to meet you, Sergeant Starling." Kate smiled at the taller woman, liking her on instinct. The two shook hands, a sincere smile on the Sergeant's face.

"Agent Todd, pleasure. We should do lunch." Kate smiled and nodded, moving back.

"I'd like that."

McGee moved forward, mentally trying to map out how he would introduce himself. He fumbled for a second before putting out his hand.

"Timothy McGee, Sergeant. It's a pleas-, nice to, uh, meet you," he verbally fumbled now, green eyes nervous. Her presence, so sure, and her beauty just jumbled everything up for him. He wanted to be sure, like Tony, but he just couldn't do it. Tony apparently could sense this or something, if his chuckle meant anything.

Sergeant Starling just smiled and shook his hand warmly, putting him at ease. She liked McGee from what she could tell from his file and seeing him. He was a good agent, amazingly smart, and pretty cute.

"It's nice to meet you too, McGee," she spoke, her hand still in his. He smiled at her, noticing the difference in greeting she gave him and Tony. He, no longer feeling stupid from his blunder, gave a final shake and moved back as her tiny hand left his. This woman handled high powered rifles, as they just saw, but her hands were small in his.

Gibbs just watched her interact with his team and smiled secretly. Her dismissal of Tony was amusing, but he could see the camaraderie forming between Kate and her and the attraction between McGee and her. Tony would be crushed.

"Now that we all know each other, because you're the only one that outwardly expressed your want for Haswari dead, Gibbs, he is being transported here for Dr. Mallard to autopsy," the Director spoke, drawing attention to him once again. He then turned around and took a seat, clearly dismissing everyone. They all made their way out, pausing only when Gibbs was called back, but then moving out again when Gibbs nodded to the door.

Outside MTAC, everyone relaxed a bit more. Being in the Director's presence, even when they did nothing wrong, was always a bit nerve wrecking.

"Can someone bring me down to Ducky? I haven't seen him in a while," the Sergeant spoke first.

"How do you know Ducky, Sergeant?" Kate asked as she began leading her.

"You can call me Olivia if you'd like. Ducky and I go way back, he's my uncle." Kate visibly showed surprise at that but just nodded and pressed the number for autopsy.

Once they started moving Olivia, as she allowed, stopped the elevator and turned to Kate. A Gibbs move if there ever was one.

"How are you doing, Agent Todd?" She asked eyes curious and warm. A stark contrast to when she stood off against Gibbs.

"Kate. I'm fine, Olivia. The bullet I took got stuck in my vest, it's just sore now," Kate responded easily, waiting for Olivia to start the elevator up again.

"That, I guessed. I was actually asking about hearing about Haswari's rifle choice. I may not know you, but that must've been shocking and kind of frightening," Olivia responded, crossing her arms across her chest. She made a sight with her black leather jacket, boots, and sure stance. Kate couldn't help but talk.

"It was shocking, and kind of eye-opening," she begun uneasily as she remembered, "If you didn't get him first I would probably be the one laying on that slab instead of him." Olivia shook her head.

"My orders were completely separate from Gibbs' want for him dead. His threat on the homecoming wasn't something to be taken lightly, and it wasn't. Apparently, the President has been waiting for a reason to go through with this anyway. Haswari wouldn't have had the chance." The women didn't know each other, had no reason to before this, but Olivia could see the fear in Kate's eyes and felt bad for the woman that would be her friend. Kate, relaxing at Olivia's speech, gave a smile to show her acceptance.

"Now that, that I can believe." And with the acceptance, Olivia restarted the elevator and was shown to the sterile autopsy room. Haswari was already laid out on the table, clothes in the process of being removed, with a bullet hole in his head and blood smeared on the rest under it.

"What kind of bullet did you use?" Kate asked, shocked at the clean hit.

"Usually it would be a .50 caliber, but because of the situation and his involvement with Mossad, I modified my rifle and used a .308 so there would be clear identification. You should actually expect someone coming soon about this." A door then opened and a man came in. The man looked around through his glasses, surprised at the people standing in the lab.

"Hey Palmer, this is Sergeant Olivia Starling." Kate motioned to Olivia who stepped up and shook hands with the nervous man.

"Nice to meet you Sergeant Starling, Jimmy Palmer, can I help you both?" Palmer looked between the women, fidgeting and moving along with his work.

"Yes, where's Ducky?" Kate asked, looking around once more.

"Oh, he went upstairs to talk to Gibbs I think. Ari was delivered to us about 20 minutes ago and he wanted to know what's going on," Palmer responded, calming down as they talked about work. He then caught the Sergeant's gaze again and the nervous feeling returned. She had that effect on a lot of people.

Not too long after the doors opened once more and a purposeful Ducky came into the room, Gibbs coming in right after him.

"Olivia, is that you, my dear?" Olivia smiled something bright, and moved forward into her uncle's embrace.

"Of course it's me, Uncle Ducky. I missed you!" She responded, the grin seeping into her voice. Her uncle let her go and smiled at his favorite, and only, niece.

"As I missed you, dear. Now, this is your work I hear?" She stood a little straighter at that and nodded, waiting for his reaction. Ducky was in the Royal Army, and he is an ME, he has no problem with death but she always feared that her family would take it badly.

"Yes sir, it's mine." She gestured to the body on the slab, claiming her kill. Ducky simply nodded and patted her on the back.

"Good job, as always. Now, how long are you in town this time?" He asked, everyone watching the two speak easily. They could see no resemblance, but they were obviously close.

"Oh, for a long time. Who knows, maybe even indefinitely." Ducky brightened at this and patted her back again before moving forward and donning a pair of gloves.

The pair of women moved towards the elevator once more when Olivia's phone rang. Answering it quickly after looking at the screen, her voice adopted an official tone.

"Sergeant Starling." She listened for a second before giving a short reply.

"Yes sir, on my way now." Pocketing her phone, the two moved into the elevator.

"I need to go to MTAC now." Going directly there, only one more floor up from the bullpen, the two got off and Kate was going to leave her there.

"You can come in, if you want." Kate decided to take her offer, curiosity getting the best of her.

"Incoming for the Sergeant," a tech spoke. She took the offered headset and stood in front of the screen as Kate took a seat behind her.

This was an important call from an important person regarding her terms for this job. She would be taking heat from a few agencies for this hit; some of them would not even be American. The only reason that she allowed, and even suggested, for Kate to sit in on this is because she could sense the good in her and her team. Who doesn't want to befriend that?

The screen brightened up and they were all greeted with the bright walls of the Oval Office and the smile of the President of the United States. The Sergeant was standing at attention before he even came into view, but she was more rigid once he could see her.

"At ease, Sergeant. You did well today." Relaxing, a grin took its place on her face as the President complimented her.

"Thank you, Mr. President. Now, to what do I owe your call today?" The Sergeant asked brightly.

"I wanted to compliment you, again, on that great shot. Your record doesn't lie. And, to speak about a position, should you want it," The President answered, leaning forward in his seat slightly. Sergeant Starling waited for the President to continue.

"You're being offered early retirement for your efforts beyond the call of duty, not including today, and a personal recommendation for whatever you choose to do, from me." The Sergeant was shocked. She expected the retirement, if she was honest. At the age of 27 she was highly accomplished: multiple degrees, two tours, and highly decorated for her work overseas as well as in intelligence.

It was the recommendation that shocked her. She knew the President, obviously, due to her work and accomplishments, but a recommendation? That was shocking, and door opening.

"Thank you, sir, I highly appreciate what you're doing for me," she spoke finally, the lilt in her voice a little more apparent for a second before leveling out.

"You're welcome, Sergeant, it's no problem for a soldier such as yourself. Now, you knew from the beginning that while you worked under my orders, there would be others who would not support this. I've received intelligence that Haswari's handler would be coming by, I suggest you prepare." The President gave a smirk, as if there was something funny about what he just said. Olivia's eye's hardened slightly but she made no other outward expression.

"Will do, sir. I believe you remember Special Agent Kate Todd, who used to work for Secret Service." Olivia waved her forward and Kate gave a salute to the image of the President.

"Ah, Kate Todd, nice to see you. You're missed over here," The President spoke lightly. Kate visibly preened, smiling at the screen.

"Nice to see you too, Mr. President. That's nice to hear, I miss Secret Service, but I like it here at NCIS," Kate spoke into Olivia's offered headset. The President gave a laugh and nodded.

"That's good to hear. Well, Sergeant, it's been a pleasure working with you once again."

"Pleasure has been all mine, sir." Giving another salute, the feed cut off and each woman relaxed a bit.

"How far beyond the call of duty have you gone, Olivia?" Kate asked, smiling at the taller woman.

"Far enough for a personal recommendation apparently," she smirked before continuing, "I just did what any Marine would do, Kate."

"Somehow, I doubt that. How about that lunch?" Kate asked after peaking at her watch.

"Sounds great. Now, I've read your files, but tell me more about you all. Starting with McGee." The door of MTAC closed soundly behind the women as they went off to grab a bite to eat. The techs watched the two go, slightly amazed at the arrival of this Sergeant and the picture the two women painted as they left.

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***peeks from between fingers***

**So, how was it?**

**I focused more on Kate and Olivia's relationship here because it seemed like the perfect way to get her involved with the team naturally. I mean, if someone saves your life in such a way, which is what Olivia did make no mistake, you would want to be friends with them. **

**Shit, I'd want to be friends with Olivia Starling, period. **

**Next up: Ziva David. This is going to get rough...and hot. **

**Review?**


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